Gold Posts Weekly Drop of More Than 3%

Gold edged fractionally higher in Friday trading, snapping two straight sessions of sharp declines. Still, the precious metal closed out the week down 3.4%, its worst weekly showing since September.

[1]Gold futures for December delivery climbed 50 cents to $1,244.10 per ounce on Friday, according to CME Group[2]. Gold traded as high as $1,248.30 and as low as $1,240.30. Bullion closed in London at $1,244, according to BullionVault[3].

Silver futures for December slipped 0.4% to $19.86 per ounce. Friday’s high for silver was $20.05, while the low was $19.82.

Metal funds were mostly lower on Friday.

The SPDR Gold Shares (GLD[4]) were flat.

The iShares Gold Trust (IAU[5]) was unchanged.

The iShares Silver Trust (SLV[6]) sank 0.6%.

Mining ETFs retreated during the day.

The Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (GDX[7]) fell 1.1%.

The Market Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF (GDXJ[8]) dropped 1.9%.

The Global X Silver Miners ETF (SIL[9]) declined 0.8%.

Gold stocks mostly pulled back on Friday.

Agnico-Eagle Mines (AEM[10]) slid 1%.

Barrick Gold (ABX[11]) dropped 2.8%.

Eldorado Gold (EGO[12]) fell 1.9%.

Goldcorp (GG[13]) waned 0.8%.

Kinross Gold (KGC[14]) rose 0.2%.

Newmont Mining (NEM[15]) slipped 0.5%.

NovaGold Resources (NG[16]) tumbled 3.1%.

Yamana Gold (AUY[17]) declined 0.7%.

Silver mining shares mostly sank during the day.

Coeur d’Alene Mines (CDE[18]) dipped 0.4%.

Hecla Mining (HL[19]) slid 0.5%.

Pan American Silver (PAAS[20]) edged down 0.1%.

Silver Wheaton (SLW[21]) fell 0.7%.

Silver Standard Resources (SSRI[22]) surged 3.9%.

As of this writing, Christopher Freeburn did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities. Adrian Ash of BullionVault[23] contributed to this report.